Glasgow Smile
by Kyocera's Vendetta
Summary: "Hell... I don't like her. She probably doesn't like me... Actually, she might hate my guts." AU. Soma.
1. Chapter 1

****Disclaimer: I do not own Soul Eater nor do I know how to make chocolate cornets.

**Glasgow Smile**

**Chapter 1: Front and Back**

* * *

She sits in the front, he sits in the back.

She's always early, he's always late. She takes notes, he doesn't even bring paper. She has the highest exam scores, he doesn't show up on test days. Their only thing in common?

They appear to hate everything that moves.

Maka packed her bag almost mechanically. The class had all but evacuated for lunch, leaving those sleeping or staring intently at her to their own devices in the prison that was class.

Wait... what?

She turned to see Eater, usual bed-ridden hair and blood eyes always clashing with his surroundings. Staring right at her.

She's sure he's day dreaming. They have no reason to exist in the same environment, or even the same _planet_, he happens to be staring at her head which may or may not be positioned in front of the clock.

Except it's not, and he's not daydreaming. She walked out of the class, glancing at him before she leaves. He's still staring at her.

Lunch consisted of convenience store items and a secluded bench away from the cafeteria. She decided the incident in class was best pretended to have not happened and concentrated on her chocolate cornet, idly chewing.

She remembered a time when her mother made these fresh. Of course chocolate was replaced with hazelnut spread, but it was still good. She had just popped the last piece of cornet in her mouth when the sound of footsteps reach her ears.

She ignored it, because they were probably looking for the bathroom, whoever they were. Only the footsteps stopped directly behind her. Maka dared not turn around because she didn't want anything thrown in her face, but if they tried anything from behind...

Well, she would promptly kick their asses.

"Hey."

She has to actively keep herself from jumping out of her skin, though her shoulders tense. She turned slowly, hoping that if they _must_ throw something it better not stain.

She blinked in surprise. It's Eater.

She had never really seen him unless he was sitting down and most of that time he spent sleeping, so she was a little surprised at how high she had to crane her head. Given, she was sitting down, but even with his slouch she probably only made it to his shoulders.

That bothered her.

He seemed to be waiting for something, and then she realized she never answered back, "Yes?"

"Uh... can I talk to you for a minute?"

"Ok?" they hold a short staring contest before he made his way around the bench and sat down.

"What are you reading?" he asked after another tense silence.

She frowned in disapproval, eyes barely glancing at the novel shoved unceremoniously in her bag in her search for her lunch, she really hated small talk, "Collectible Spoons of the Third Reich."

He doesn't appear to be surprised, the only hint he even cares is a subtle lift of his right eyebrow, "Is it interesting?"

"No." she responded simply. This tactic was something of a rather brilliant invention she had concocted in her first year. Creep the person out. They leave.

It doesn't work though, only his slouch seemed to have increased and now they are almost the same height. She took a moment to openly stare at him. Granted, she was allowed to because what the hell was he doing here?

His hair seemed naturally wild, though the color was still questionable. His eyes were an intense red and it would take closer scrutiny to see if they were contacts or not. Messy uniform, inappropriate footwear. What the hell did he want again?

"So, I have-" he paused, as if his carefully thought out words needed rearranging, "...a _request_, if you will."

He talked surprisingly proper for a slacker. She figured staring at the tree in the courtyard would make this easier, scratching at the label around her water bottle. "And that would be?"

" A date."

Hmmm. She let the words settle in for a moment, careful to hide her surprise. Rational explanations quickly arose in her mind, she picked the most likely one.

"Did you lose a bet?"

Now he seemed a little surprised, but only by the subtle lift of his eyelids; whether it be due to her question or the emotionless tone she took, Maka knew not.

"No."

Another guess then, "A dare?"

"No." he seemed firmer this time, "Do you get this a lot?"

She considered this for a moment, and said to her water bottle, "No."

It seemed they both tied in the curt department. She heard him sigh before straightening up again, "One date. Couldn't hurt right?"

It could actually hurt very much.

"We'll see." Maka relented vaguely, tossing her water in to her bag and getting up to leave.

She was a little smug hearing the confusion in his voice, "So is that a yes?"

She is already back in the hallway, pausing by the wall before finally meeting his red eyes.

"We'll see."

History passed too quickly to Maka's liking. Her thoughts kept lurking back to the topic that was Eater. He didn't seem the type to go out of his way to publicly humiliate someone. In fact, he didn't seem like the type to go out of his way. Period.

The only person he ever talked to was Tsubaki but she was never in the same class as either of them. Maka stopped for a moment, surprised with herself. She had been keeping tabs on the boy in the back.

Was it because of his eyes? The first time she saw him, she dismissed his hair as bleached. But his eyes, too intense to be artificial, were always dulled by his lack of emotion.

Like her.

She was so caught up in her revelation that she barely heard the class dismissal. As usual, she was one of the last to leave, pausing at her locker to pick up some more books.

"Hey!"

Maka wanted to sigh. She turned around to stare at a... flock of girls.

Their "leader" glared fiercely at her, "What were you and Soul talking about?"

"...Huh?"

She then leaned forward to come face to face with Maka who had to restrain herself from biting the girl's nose off.

"You're supposed to be smart aren't you?" she accused condescendingly, "What were you doing with our Soul?"

_Our _Soul. Pft.

"Talking about spoons." she said blankly. Well, they talked about a book about spoons. Very briefly.

"You think you're better than us huh?" the girl was almost screaming now, which was unnecessary as Maka was around 2 inches away from her.

Not really?

She didn't answer, so the girl continued, "Stay away from Soul, you snot-nosed bookworm."

Maka snorted, causing the girl to reel back.

"What the hell's your problem?" one of the girls demanded from the crowd.

Maka closed her locker, twirling the dial to a random number, "Uh."

Playing stupid was always a good tactic.

It was no good, they were converging on her, "Just say you'll have nothing to do with Soul! You wouldn't have a chance with him anyways!"

"Yeah he only talked to you because he was bored!"

Maka wondered if that was true, either way...

"You think so?"

"Forget this." the leader said, smirking now, "Clearly she has the social IQ of a child. He must have felt sorry for her."

The girls followed after her, agreeing whole-heartedly. She could still hear their laughter from around the corner.

Maka didn't know whether to be pissed off that they tried to scare her or that they considered her worthless, either way she walked purposefully to the entrance of the school grounds.

* * *

"Hi, Soul. I hope you didn't wait long."

Soul looked up to see Tsubaki descending the stairs.

"Not really."

She smiled, relieved, "That's good. By the way, how did-"

Soul wanted to sigh when Tsubaki was blocked off by a wall of females.

"Hi Soul!"

"Are you going home yet?"

"Didn't you just hate that English test today?"

They had a test?

"How come we didn't see you at lunch?"

"What color is your motorcycle?"

How the hell did they know he owned a motorcycle? He was tall enough to glare over their heads at Tsubaki who only smiled sheepishly. That was the face of guilt. His eyes narrowed.

Soul was just planning an escape route when someone brushed past him from behind, almost pushing him in to the hungry crowd of girls.

"Fine." a voice muttered, so low he could barely hear it.

Soul peeked over his shoulder to see _her_ back briskly retreating off school grounds.

He grinned.

* * *

A/N: I AM SO SORRY.

WHAT IS THIS?

I DUNNO.

.

help


	2. Chapter 2

**Glasgow Smile**

**Chapter 2: Shark Bait**

A/N: Read your reviews. Now feel like jerk/ass/shit for not making this chapter a priority.

* * *

She's sitting in the courtyard again.

Soul paused a moment to run a hand through his hair. She was a weird one, that much he was sure of. So much so that she could have played it off as quirky.

He took another look at her dead face and decided that wasn't possible.

Her expression is blank as he sits next to her, but she's tense. He can tell by the set in her shoulders, the stubborn set in the line that is her mouth.

"So." he started, shoving his hands deep in to his pockets.

"..."

"Tomorrow at 7?"

"..."

"..."

"Ok."

He concentrated very hard on his knees to fight back the sigh that threatened to escape. She was no help when it came to situations like this, though he never expected her to be.

"Should I meet you at your place?"

"...Everard Street."

"Ok- Wait, the apartment by the pizza place?"

"..."

"That's a cr-" he paused, recollected himself, "Alright."

Alright.

The worst was over. Soul stood up to leave. As he passed the drinking fountain back to the cafeteria, he caught a glimpse of a figure staring at him from across the courtyard, blue hair sticking up in all directions.

Soul's eyes narrowed but his pace did not break. He could see the smug grin on the man's face before entering the cafeteria.

Whispers followed Maka throughout the halls.

"_It's her."_

_"No way!"_

_"They say __**he**__ asked __**her**__ out."_

She wondered if the store would have another sale on chicken. Her fridge was running dangerously low on meat. And soy sauce... and a lot of things. Yeah, she'd need to go to the store.

Maka brooded, that would mean the library was a no-go today.

"Hey!"

Feeling an on-going tradition forming, Maka turned to see the same blonde bimbo from yesterday. She didn't have her usual worshippers today, only a select few who looked almost identical to their leader.

"I thought I told you to stay away from Soul?"

"I don't recall answering you." Maka responded blankly. The girl blinked, scrunching her nose. Maka realized it was her first full sentence to... well, anyone. It was practically conversation.

This reverie kept Maka from reacting when one of the clones stormed up with a loud shout and knocked the books from her arms. Papers scattered and a few smacked Maka in the face.

Maka didn't seem to notice as she bashed the girl's nose in.

* * *

"I found this in the hallways. I'm sorry... the pages are ripped." Liz offered a much trodden on history text that Maka accepted silently.

She only managed one good punch before a tidal wave of color and shouts landed Maka on the floor with a girl grappling for her hair, the two others holding up their now unconscious friend and their leader standing there still comprehending what had just transpired.

Before Maka could remember she had legs and legs could _kick things_, something had pushed the girl off Maka, grabbed her wrist, and towed her through the winding halls and in to a rarely used bathroom.

She was a little surprised to find out Liz Thompson, who had no reason to even believe Maka existed, had just saved her from a potential disaster. What did she want? But Liz had only asked her to stay here as she left to who knows where.

Maybe she was getting the principal, though that would have resulted in everything Liz had did until that moment irrelevant. Maka rocked back on her heels, catching her explosion of an appearance in the mirror. She frowned and redid her pigtails, fingers dancing around the bump forming on the back of her head.

Maka was just straightening her tie when Liz entered the bathroom again, carrying Maka's book bag. Or what was left of it.

She stared at it blankly for a second before asking, "Why?"

Liz placed the bag on the counter before replying to the sink, "Do I need a reason to help someone?"

She did if she wanted to survive in this world. She did if she didn't want someone to distrust her.

"There is always a reason." Maka said, not moving from her spot by the hand dryer.

Liz frowned, though it seemed more thoughtful than angry, "I suppose you're right."

Maka decided standing like a scared little bitch on the other side of the bathroom wasn't helping anybody. She approached the sinks, grabbing her bag with a grimace. What little thread was left that held the straps together was thoroughly broken, the fabric torn and frayed so badly sewing it back together would be near impossible.

Liz leaned against one of the walls, "I'm Liz by the way. Liz Thompson."

"I know who you are." Maka flinched at the harsh tone she had accumulated over the years, "I mean... nice to meet you."

She turned to see if Liz was at all offended, only to be surprised that the other girl was smiling. Maka rarely saw true smiles like that one, it made her own lips twitch to respond.

"You're a tough kid. I never figured, what with you studying all the time."

"...Thanks?"

Maka beats back the silence by unceremoniously shoving her books back in to her bag. Once she managed to button shut the bulging mass of literature Liz finally said, "It will get worse you know."

Maka turned up, silently asking what she meant. Liz seemed good at silent cues because she explained, "The bullying. They're not happy with you."

Well Maka wasn't exactly bursting with love for them either.

"I'll handle it."

"I don't doubt that." Liz said and without another word left the bathroom.

Had Liz simply wished to warn her?

Maka wasn't used to receiving help from anyone. Much less the off-limits Cinderella girl. It felt more like she wanted to know what the fuss was about than actually helping Maka. Maybe she wanted to check out what the big deal was.

And apparently Maka was a big deal.

She brooded to the skies, carrying two plastic bags worth of groceries. Perhaps this was Eater's intention, but she had already established he wouldn't stoop so low as to ask out the nerdiest girl he could find for his own twisted amusement.

Because that is not how lazy people work.

Maka walked up the fire staircase to her apartment. She had stopped using the main entrance months ago after a run-in with the Zookeeper (her landlord, she could never stop rolling her eyes at his name) and one of his... friends.

She ducked through her open window on the third floor and dumped her bags onto the small plastic, folding table.

Tomorrow was Saturday.

She paused for a moment, wondering if it would be okay to show up in her school's uniform, before smacking a hand over her eyes for even worrying about it.

Tomorrow was going to be hell.

"What the- _Albarn?_ You sure got guts down coming here."

Maka looked up to see her landlord staring up at her with what she could only presume was distaste. She honestly couldn't blame him.

"Just passing." she stated bluntly, reaching the bottom step. He simply crossed a leg from his stool by the mailboxes but it made her flinch all the same.

That was when he _really _looked at her, "Huh. Ms. No-tits get a hot date? Or you coming for an interview?"

He raises his eyebrows suggestively at her, which she ignores.

"That really is none of your business." she says blatantly though she can already tell he's ready to blow a gasket. She makes a bee-line for the exit but he's up and grabbing for her arm.

She shakes his hand off with as much force as she could muster, pushing at him before ramming herself on the door and all but spilling onto the sidewalk where pedestrians and drivers alike stared at her abrupt entrance into the world.

The "Zookeeper" grimaced, leering at her before slinking back in to the dark room that was the entrance, his yellowed eyes still visible even in the shadows. She refuses to look at him, pulling her skirt downwards which had rode up in the short scuffle back to appropriate length.

"Albarn?"

She is instantly aware of Eater's surprised form several feet off, staring at her with a mix of surprise and confusion, his serrated teeth peeking from behind his slightly ajar mouth. Maka grimaced when she remembered what exactly she had dressed up for, and realized she had just escaped her shark of a landlord.

To fall into the jaws of another.


End file.
